The Thoughts and Writing of Robert Wherry

2016 Fall December 9 Friday

Happened to read my entry for April 6, 2016 and I noted I mentioned it was “April 2016 already” and wrote about time going fast. Well…. it is now December 2016 and I really don’t know where the time went or goes.

Doing research about whether it is better to leave the thermostat “steady” on a single temperature or change it depending on if you’re in the house or not.

The answer is of course there is no firm answer. There are a lot of good reasons for leaving it steady (on regular basis anyway, assuming you aren’t out for a long time) and plenty of reasons for adjusting it frequently.

The fallacy about leaving it steady is that any house “leaks” hot air, so the furnace or ac will still need to work keep the house at that temperature.

Of course, the argument for changing it frequently is that the furnace or ac will need to work harder to get it up to the chosen temperature.

The middle of the road answer is to adjust it down if you are going to be out of the house for 8 hours.

Of course, if (as I assume most people do) you have a blower with one speed, it doesn’t really matter if the furnace or ac is “working hard” or not. Whether it is just “maintaining” or “catching up” it is blowing at the same speed.

Apparently this is one of “life’s great arguments” , which there is never a decisive answer that fits every situation.

Anyway, I kind of feel like it is better to adjust the thermostat, but on the other hand, there is no sense being uncomfortable.

I still don’t know if the “automatic learning” has priority over the “scheduled” times for the thermostat. Our thermostat is in “learning” mode right now, whatever that may bring.

Also looking at “Nest” smoke detectors and security system, as I may have mentioned before.

I have read how some consider the Nest a “piece of artwork” versus the regular thermostat. I guess art is in the eye of the beholder, so to speak. It certainly has a lot more personality than a regular thermostat, if that makes any sense. Kind of like R2D2 in Star Wars, except it doesn’t speak. (Yet)

Today is my Mom’s birthday. She would have been 104 years old today. She actually passed away 20 year’s ago (in September, 1996). Again, it is strange how time passes.

While it seems cold to say I am walking in 23 degree weather, it really isn’t that bad. Of course, I dress for it and I don’t like the cold, but it is livable, especially compared to the snow storms etc. I see in other parts of the country!

My “Great American Literature” book I am listening to on my walk just finished with William Faulkner and is moving on to “The Grapes of Wrath”, which I am looking forward to because I read a lot of his books. Didn’t always understand them at the age I read them first, but I read them.